The Three Musketeers

This historical romance, perhaps the greatest cloak-and-sword story ever, relates the adventures of four fictional swashbuckling heroes who served the French kings Louis XIII and Louis XIV. When the dashing young D'Artagnon arrives in Paris from Gascony, he becomes embroiled in three duels with the Three Musketeers: Athos, Porthos, and Aramis. But when he proves himself by fighting not against, but with, the Three Musketeers, they form a quick and lasting friendship.

Adventure

A rip-roaring adventure, filled with intrigue and humor, and read with style by Simon Vance. This is one of my favorite audiobooks.

The Three Musketeers

17th Century France. Dashing young swordsman D’Artagnan heads for Paris, dreaming of serving the King as a member of his elite guard. On arrival, he meets the three musketeers - Athos, Porthos and Aramis - and the four men soon become fast friends. Together, they strive to outwit the murderous schemes of power-hungry Cardinal Richelieu, and save the Queen from a plot to dishonour her. Their adventures take them on a perilous journey through the French countryside and across the Channel to England....

The Three Musketeers

Set during the reign of Louis XIII (1610-43) and based on actual events, The Three Musketeers is perhaps the greatest "cloak and sword" story ever written. Three Musketeers, loyal servants of the King, are joined by the dashing D'Artagnan, a veritable Byronic hero. These four are pitted against the master of intrigue, Cardinal Richelieu, and the quintessential wicked woman, Lady de Winter. Dumas was quite expert in pacing and varying action while weaving historical fact with purest fiction.

The Three Musketeers

Mixing a bit of seventeenth-century French history with a great deal of invention, Alexandre Dumas tells the tale of young D'Artagnan and his musketeer comrades, Porthos, Athos, and Aramis. Together they fight to foil the schemes of the brilliant, dangerous Cardinal Richelieu, who pretends to support the king while plotting to advance his own power. Bursting with swirling swordplay, swooning romance, and unforgettable figures.

What Fun!

Reading The Three Musketeers was great fun! I especially loved the way it ended. I count it among my favorites now, and will no doubt read it again. T..Show More »he impressive combination of Alexandre Dumas and John Lee brought it to life for me in a way I didn't think possible. I love it!

***NOTE 1: Thanks to Audible and John Lee for making this experience possible. It was important to me that the experience be authentic, realistic, and free flowing. Through Audible's and John Lee's efforts, everything that I feared would make reading a noted classic like this cumbersome or difficult???has disappeared. Instead, it was just... amazing!

***NOTE 2: Mr. Lee, PLEASE narrate James Clavell's Shogun and King Rat! I think only you could really do them justice.

Twenty Years After

Twenty years later, time has weakened the resolve of the Musketeers and dispersed their loyalties. But treasons and stratagems still cry out for justice: civil war endangers the throne of France, while in England, Cromwell threatens to send Charles I to the scaffold. Dumas brings his immortal quartet out of retirement to cross swords with time, the malevolence of men, and the forces of history. But their greatest test is a titanic struggle with the son of Milady, who wears the face of Evil.

Dumas YES, Narrator NO

I recently discovered Dumas' D'Artangion series, starting with the first one that is narrated by Simon Vance. I then skipped "Twenty Years After" and..Show More » listened to "The Man in the Iron Mask", also narrated by Simon Vance. I decided to go back and listen to the one's I'd missed, starting with "Twenty Years After", narrated by Frederick Davidson. Well, in a work "Yuck". Mr. Davidson is a sad excuse for a narrator/reader/story teller. I gave it a chance, listening for two hours. Alas, I could not take Mr. Davidson any more and decided to check the book out of the library, as Simon Vance does not narrate a version of this book. I have placed Mr. Frederick Davidson on my do not listen to list forever.

The Vicomte de Bragelonne: Ten Years After

It is May 1660 and the fate of nations is at stake. Mazarin plots, Louis XIV is in love, and Raoul de Bragelonne, son of Athos, is intent on serving France and winning the heart of Louise de la Valliere. D'Artagnan, meanwhile, is perplexed by a mysterious stranger, and soon he learns that his old comrades already have great projects in hand.

Why didn't I read this stuff sooner

After reading The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers, I could completely understand why everyone I know loves the work of Alexandre Dumas...Show More » I thought that this book might be greatly inferior to Dumas's better-known work, but this guy can't seem to write a terrible story.

Humor, action, memorable characters - the more Dumas I read, the more of it I want to read. These books have really aged well, and I see their fingerprints everywhere I look in fantasy and sci-fi.

I wish I'd known this is kind of The Three Musketeers Part 3 before I went and spoiled bits of Twenty Years Later, which came in between the two books. I thought this was a standalone like The Count of Monte Cristo, but I was incorrect. I could have gotten that tidbit of information from Wikipedia, and I'll soon fill that gap in the narrative, but it is unfortunate that this wasn't described as a sequel in the write-up here on Audible.

Louise de La Vallière

As part of the d'Artagnan Romances following The Three Musketeers and Twenty Years After, and devoted in large part to romantic events at the court of France's King Louis XIV, Louise de La Valliere is the second part of Alexandre Dumas's 268 chapter novel The Vicomte de Bragelonne: Ten Years Later, which first appeared in serial form between 1847 and 1850.

A Soap Opera with Musketeers

This story seems quaint and very subtle by modern standards.

Large tracts are devoted to the minutiae of French royalty and the surround..Show More »ing courtiers, where sometimes there is a very long and (impeccably narrated) winding road to reach a climax where one of several gallant knights squeezes one of several ladies-in-waiting hands or some other equally scandalous body part.

I suppose this must have titillated in it's day, but it really doesn't measure up to the excitement of "The 3 Musketeers", "20 Years After" or even "The Man in the Iron Mask", which follows on from this, and is well enough written that you could probably jump from "Le Vicomte de Bragelonne" to "The Man in the Iron Mask" without losing much in the bargain.

The Man in the Iron Mask

A tale of mystery, adventure, and political intrigue, this conclusion to Dumas’ swashbuckling musketeer saga is based on the true story of a masked prisoner who dwelled in the Bastille during the Louis XIV’s reign and whose identity remains in question to this day.

Better than any movie

I've seen many, many movies based on this story and each one has the same theme. The man in the Iron Mask was the kings twin. History doesn't know w..Show More »hether he was or not. So, a lot of movies were based on the whispering of the French nobility. So, I decided after listening too/reading Oliver Twist and finding it didn't match any movie I decided to do this book. I was surprised that the movies have it wrong. Imagine that? But what do they have wrong and write? Read and find out! I like the narrator of this book as he doesn't get the voices confused as he reads along. I can also understand why this book should be required reading in school.

The Man in the Iron Mask

Deep inside the dreaded Bastille, a 23-year-old prisoner called merely "Philippe" has languished for eight long, dark years. He does not know his real name or what crime he is supposed to have committed. But Aramis, one of the original Three Musketeers, has bribed his way into the cell to reveal the shocking secret that has kept Philippe locked away from the world. That carefully concealed truth could topple Louis XIV, king of France, which is exactly what Aramis is plotting to do.